


Colorbound

by limesicle



Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Fluff, M/M, soulbonds
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-25
Updated: 2016-03-25
Packaged: 2018-05-28 22:46:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6348667
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/limesicle/pseuds/limesicle
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>You see in color when you meet your soulmate, but sometimes it's not easy to tell who exactly it is. Sometimes they don't even talk to you. Sometimes they do. And sometimes, you find yourself being a hopeless romantic when you thought that was your best friends job and not yours.</p><p>In other words, a SouHaru soulmate AU that ends up in ridiculous fluff.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Colorbound

Haru is eleven years old when his world stops for a second, and the colors blossom from the center of his vision. He doesn’t know who it is, and there are a lot of people he’s never met before. It’s a swim meet. People from different schools gather and swim. He glances around the poolside, but no one catches his eye. Haru stares at the blue of the chlorinated pool. It’s his favorite color, he decides. A moment later he’s swept up in the rhythm of the meet, and forgets about the soul mate thing.

 

He doesn’t mention his newly-vibrant world to anyone, but he can guess that Makoto knows. Makoto always knows. He wonders if Makoto sees in color, but he doesn’t ask. It’s not something he feels any real desire to talk about.

 

After the first few days of being able to see in color, it becomes normal. The blue of the sky or the ocean always capture his attention for a moment, but they soon become ordinary. Haru is busy with swimming, and then with just life and school. He swears his world has a shade of gray cast over it when he beats Rin in their one-on-one race. It takes until his last year of high school to think about soul mates again. He thinks about it when he’s backed into the vending machine by Yamazaki, of all people, and he doesn’t immediately know why.

 

Haru’s eyes widen as he feels his back push against flat glass. There’s a chill that runs down his spine, and it’s only slightly related to the angry look in Yamazaki’s eyes. Speaking of Yamazaki’s eyes, they’re blue. Not blue like the sky, but blue mixed with green like the ocean on a clear day. His eyes are lit by the vending machine light. Haru sees passion in those eyes.

 

“It’s you,” he murmurs, in a voice low enough that Yamazaki doesn’t hear what he says even though their faces are mere centimeters apart.

“Oi, Nanase, are you listening? I told you to stop getting in Rin’s way.”

 

Yamazaki pulls away, intending to leave the scene, but Haru grabs his wrist. 

 

“Can you see color?” He asks.

  
Yamazaki’s eyes lose their anger for an instant. He sees a sort of confused softness in them for a single instant, but it passes quickly, replaced by a much fiercer emotion.

 

“That has nothing to do with this,” the butterfly swimmer snaps.

 

He wrenches his hand free of Haru’s grasp and leaves. Haru watches him go.  _ So that’s my soul mate, _ he thinks. It’s clear they don’t get along. It’s clear that Yamazaki doesn’t think he needs, or wants, a soul mate, and that thought hurts more than it should. 

 

Sousuke tries to reorder his thoughts as he walks away. He doesn’t even realize his head is spinning until he walks to close to the wall as he turns a corner and slams his forehead into drywall. He stands stunned for a moment, his thoughts even more jumbled than they were a moment before. He manages to make it back to the rest of the team after that, but his mind lingers on the swimmer Rin seems so obsessed with:  _ Nanase. _

 

During practice, Sousuke focuses on Rin’s red as much as he can. He knows the Iwatobi swimmers are there, but he tries not to let his gaze wander to them. He fails a couple of times, but mostly succeeds. His eyes don’t meet Nanase’s again until they swim the relay. He’s not sure exactly what prompts him to ask Rin to let him swim freestyle, but he does. He can feel the weight of blue eyes on him then. Nanase beats him, of course, because he’s not really a freestyle swimmer, but he gives a good chase. 

 

Sousuke lies in the dorm he shares with Rin that night with his eyes refusing to stay shut even though he’s physically exhausted. 

 

“Hey Rin, you awake?”

 

It takes a couple seconds for the redhead to respond. “Yeah, what’s up Sousuke?”

“Can you see in color?” He asks.

 

It’s not something he would normally bring, up but he can’t get Nanase out of his head. And he can’t get Nanase’s question out of his head either. He hears Rin laugh from his bunk of the shared bed.

 

“Sousuke, are you turning into a romantic?”

“Shut up, Rin.” Sousuke rolls his eyes even though Rin can’t see him. “That would be you, not me.”

“But, yes, I can.”

 

Sousuke hums in response. “Who is it?”

 

“I think it’s Haru.”

 

Sousuke feels like a bucket of ice has been dropped on his head. There are stories about multiple people having the same soul mate. soul mates aren’t always requited. Some people don’t have soul mates or just never meet them. Sousuke never thought about having one or not, but he likes having his world be in color. In Sousuke’s opinion, the whole soul mate thing is overrated and annoying. By now he knows that Nanase is his. He likes Rin, but he’d never share. Maybe it’s just another pain-in-the-ass twist of fate for him. As if to spite him, his shoulder twinges and he has to shift his position to put weight on the other side of his body.

 

“You think?” Sousuke asks, trying to keep his tone casual, but there’s a hollowness to his voice.

 

“It happened when I went to Iwatobi.” Rin shrugs, and even though Sousuke can’t see it, he can hear the rustle of sheets. “I’ve never talked to him about it though.”

 

Sousuke ponders that. “Maybe you should.” The statement comes out harsher than he intended.

 

“What’s up with you?” Rin asks a moment later.

“Nothing,” he replies. He knows the redhead won’t buy it, but the word cuts off the conversation off there.

 

He doesn’t want to talk about Nanase and the possibility that he shares a soul mate with Rin. His hands curl into fists at his sides. He doesn’t like Nanase, why should he? But for some reason, he hates the idea of Nanase being with someone else. With that thought souring his mind, he falls into an uneasy slumber.

 

Over the next week, he doesn’t bring up soul mates or color again, and Rin doesn’t ask. The thoughts don’t leave his mind. Sousuke finds himself wondering what it would be like 

 

At the next joint practice with the Iwatobi swim club, Sousuke turns away when he notices Rin drag Nanase off to another room when they’re done swimming. He does stare, though, when Nanase reappears alone and then pushes Tachibana out of the room. When Nanase comes back a second time, he catches Sousuke watching him. The line of his mouth hardens, and his eyes dart away from Sousuke’s gaze. Sousuke tries not to feel guilty.

 

That night, Rin starts a conversation with a question Sousuke is slowly beginning to hate.

 

“Can you see in color?”

 

Sousuke considers ignoring it and pretending to be asleep, but Rin asks it again. His eyes flicker open and he stares at the ceiling again.

 

“Yes.” His mouth feels dry; it’s a topic he didn’t really want to touch, but here they are.

 

“By the way, mine’s not Haru, it’s Makoto. You know what Haru did when I asked him? He laughed; he laughed at me when I said I thought we were soul mates.” Rin huffs indignantly. “But then, he’s the one who figured out it was probably Makoto instead, so I guess all’s well that ends well.”

 

Rin hesitates for a moment, no doubt thinking about his soul mate and what that means. “Have you figured out who yours is?”

“Maybe,” he replies, and Rin kicks the underside of his bunk hard enough to make him jump.

 

“Rin,” he complains, stretching out his best friend’s name into a sigh.

“Oh, don’t be so dramatic,” Rin laughs. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to, but I  _ am _ your best friend.”

 

Sousuke glares at the ceiling. “You’ll laugh.”

“I will not.”

“You will too.”

“You’ll keep bothering me until I tell you though, right?”

“Yes–well, it’s your choice whether to ignore me or not, but I will ask.”

 

Sousuke lets out a defeated sigh. “Please don’t laugh.”

“I promise I won’t.”

 

“Nanase.”

“Wait, Haru? Are you sure?” Rin asks incredulously, the latter part of his question swallowed by the laughter he promised to suppress. “You did say he was pretty.”

“I did not!” Sousuke shoots back indignantly. “I said his  _ swimming _ was pretty.”

“Well, whatever. He  _ is _ pretty though,” Rin says, his voice still unsteady with unvoiced laughter.

 

Sousuke covers his head with a blanket. “Oh my god, shut up,” he mutters, words muffled by the palms of his hands.

 

“You could start with calling him by his given name,” Rin prompts.

 

Sousuke rolls over and pretends he can’t hear another word Rin says.

 

“Haruka is a nice name, and you may as well use it. He doesn’t talk much, but he tends to answer if you ask him something. He’s not half as cold as he appears at first sight. The more I think about it, the more I think it’s a good thing.” He can hear the smile in Rin’s voice. “Still there, Sousuke?”

 

“No,” he murmurs, and Rin doesn’t say anything more.

 

At the joint practices, Haru is distracted by the fact that his soul mate seems to be ignoring him. He wishes he was free of the annoying draw on his attention that pulls his mind off of swimming, but it’s not something he can dismiss completely. 

 

He was shaken when Rin dragged him to the side for a conversation, but that was resolved easily. Haru hasn’t accustomed himself to the idea of Makoto being Rin’s soul mate, but he thinks he can accept it in time. Rin is a good person, he knows, and Makoto will do what he does best and that is take care of someone else. Haru finds himself drawing away ever so slightly from his best friend. Makoto is destined to be with Rin. He knows that soul mates aren’t always romantic, but he can already guess that Makoto’s will be.

 

Haru is surprised, to say the least, when Yamazaki taps him on the shoulder after their third joint practice. He looks up into eyes of a bright color that he’s trying not to let become his favorite. Haru smooths the momentary expression of surprise out of his features, and gives Yamazaki a neutral look.

 

“Nanase–er, Haruka–can I talk to you?”

 

The freestyle swimmer’s eyes widen a fraction. This is the first time Yamazaki has reached out to him without being overtly unfriendly. It feels nice, and a small smile appears unbidden on his lips.

 

“Yes, Sousuke.” He turns his body to face the other swimmer.

“To answer your question–I can see in color.” Sousuke looks away as he speaks.

 

“You’re turning red,” Haru points out. 

 

Sousuke’s first reaction is to glare at the shorter, but then he notices the playful smirk on his face.

 

“Oh, shut up. So are you,” he retorts.

“Am not.” Haru’s mouth turns into a pout.

“Don’t lie. I just told you I can see–” He lifts his hand to brush over Haru’s cheek without thinking, but freezes when he finds himself swallowed by Haru’s blue eyes.

 

Things that weren’t moving at all are suddenly moving too fast. The touch burns even after he breaks physical contact. For a moment his heartbeat feels double, like there’s another heart beating beside his own. They both take a hurried step back. The closeness between them somehow feeling like too much.

 

“Soulbond,” Haru murmurs.

 

Sousuke isn’t sure if he hears Haru say it or if it’s more of a feeling. It’s unsettling in a way, that you can be so close without being close at all. Sousuke stares at his hand. It looks the same as it always does, but the memory of the swift brush against Haru’s skin is forefront in his mind.

 

“Soulbond,” he echoes in a voice that’s almost reverent. After all, everyone knows that soul mates are common, but soulbonds form only rarely.

 

They’re interrupted a second later by Rin. “Oh, Sousuke, I thought you might have gotten lo–did I interrupt something?”

 

Both of the blue-eyed swimmers take another step back. “No,” they say in perfect unison, and Rin gives them a funny look. He does his best to shrug it off, and they go their separate ways for the day. Rin doesn’t say anything to his best friend until they get back to their shared room that night. When he does, he kind of explodes like he’s been holding back questions for hours, which, no doubt, he has. Sousuke answers only some of them. At half past one in the morning, he shuts off the flow of Rin’s questions with a “we need to sleep.”

 

As the tournament approaches, both Haru and Sousuke think about swimming more and about their soul mate less. That isn’t to say they don’t think about their soul mate at all. It’s a little hard to ignore something like that anyways. They spend at least a couple moments alone at the end of each joint swim practice. Rin doesn’t interrupt after the first time. In these little moments, they don’t talk. Sometimes they sit knee-to-knee, simply resting in each other’s silence. Sometimes Sousuke brings their foreheads together. They sit close enough that their breathing syncs and the air between them buzzes. Each time the soulbond makes another appearance. It’s not permanent yet, but it starts to linger for longer even after they separate.

 

In their last practice before the tournament, it takes more time for them to find a minute away from both of their teams. They sit without talking, letting their breathing be the only sound in the air. Haru rests his forehead in the bend of Sousuke’s neck. It’s closer than they’ve been before, but it’s not unpleasant. Rather, it’s the opposite.

 

“There’s a lot of pressure,” Haru murmurs, and for a second, Sousuke can feel a shadow of the stress Haru is under.

 

Sousuke knows there are scouts watching the freestyle swimmer, and he tries not to be jealous. All he wanted was to swim competitively, but he can’t. He’ll hardly make it to the end of this year with his shoulder. If he’s lucky, he’ll be able to recover if he doesn’t swim in college. Frustration hits hard, but he tries to suppress it knowing that their bond is open. He doesn’t succeed.

 

“Sorry,” Haru breathes, and he leans into Sousuke a little more.

 

Haru puts his weight into Sousuke’s good shoulder. There aren’t words for the things he wants to convey to the other swimmer, so he doesn’t speak. He could say something along the lines of “be careful,” but he knows why Sousuke is so bent on swimming. Through their bond, Sousuke senses something like worry. He stiffens against Haru. He hadn’t wanted to think about his shoulder and let Haru know, but with their bond it’s impossible to hide.

 

Haru lifts his head, and opens his eyes. When they’re sitting down, he can look into Sousuke’s eyes without having to crane his neck. Sousuke’s eyes are bright, and he blinks almost as if he wants to look away, but he doesn’t. Haru holds his gaze for a moment before he replaces his head, nose brushing against Sousuke’s collarbone.

  
They sit for longer than they usually do, enjoying shared warmth and a moment of comfort. When they part, the gentle hum of the bond stays in the back of both of their minds. They leave with a simple “see you tomorrow.”

 

Haru walks to Samezuka’s gate, mind still lingering on his soul mate. Usually, Makoto waits for him so they go home together. He stops when he sees two figures standing by the gate instead of one. He recognizes the second as Rin. Haru debates whether or not to go up to them. He doesn’t want to cut in, but he does want to go home, and he doesn’t know of another way to leave the Samezuka campus. He tries to keep his gaze elsewhere to give them privacy, but he doesn’t miss it when they both lean forward.

 

Haru looks up again only when Rin calls out to him. “Hey, Haru, how long have you been there?”

 

He takes that as his cue to approach, only shrugging in answer. When he’s close enough to see their faces clearly, he sees that Rin is red, but Makoto is redder.

 

“Let’s go,” Makoto offers in a still-embarrassed voice.

 

Haru bids Rin farewell, and Makoto walks with him through the gate. He doesn’t say anything, but there’s an aura of embarrassment still radiating off of the tall backstroke swimmer. After he watches the two go, Rin walks back to the dorm. He finds Sousuke reclining in the top bunk earbuds in but reading a book for an assignment. He looks up when Rin crosses his arms on the railing and rests his chin on them.

 

“You look a little flushed,” Sousuke comments.

 

Rin reaches out an arm and smacks him good-naturedly. “That’s none of your business.”

“Did Haru walk in on you making out with Tachibana or something?”

“No!” Rin answers too quickly. “How would you know anyway?”

“Lucky guess,” Sousuke answers, giving a mysterious sort of smile.

“Wait, how long have you been calling him ‘Haru?’”

“A while.” 

 

Rin eyes his friend suspiciously. “How are you two getting on anyway?”

 

“Just fine.” Sousuke lowers the book so Rin can’t see his face and the smile that appears there whenever he thinks of Haru.

 

“You sap.”

 

Sousuke moves the book so he can glare at Rin. “What are you talking about?” He asks in as level a voice as he can manage.

 

Rin rolls his eyes.

 

“Even if I can’t see you, I can hear the sappiness in the way you talk.”

“You can _ not _ .”

“I can. So are you guys the romantic type?” Rin raises his eyebrow suggestively.

 

Sousuke drops the book on his face. Haru and romance are usually things that don’t go together in his head. Sure, they sit together and quietly share each other’s company, but it’s not really  _ romantic.  _ Well, maybe a little. Sousuke sits up rubbing his nose where the book hit it, and then flicks Rin on the forehead.

 

“I’m trying to study.”

“No, you’re trying to avoid answering the question.”

 

Sousuke rolls onto his side and opens the book again. “I’m not really sure what type we are,” he mutters.

 

Rin lets it be at that, and Sousuke tries to focus on the book. He fails miserably.

 

When Sousuke wakes in the morning, he stares up at the ceiling now lit with sunlight. There are three days left until the tournament, and he swallows back the nervousness that sits heavy in the pit of his stomach. When Rin wakes, he steals Sousuke’s phone and puts in Haru’s number.

 

“You should have it.” That’s all the explanation Rin gives.

 

Sousuke thinks about it all the way through classes. During lunch time he pulls up the contact list on his phone. It would be stupid to delete it. So instead of erasing the contact, he sends a message: “hi.”

 

He receives a text back within minutes.

 

_ this is sousuke right? _

 

_ yes _ , Sousuke responds.  _ do you want to meet up later? _

 

He sends the text before he really thinks about what he’s asking.

 

_ like a date? _

 

Sousuke nearly drops his phone when he sees Haru’s response. He glances around quickly to see if any of his classmates noticed his reaction. None of them appear to. He turns back to his phone.

 

_ if you want. _

_ meet me at the pier? _

 

_ sure _

 

Sousuke tries to ignore the fact that his heart beats faster at the simple affirmative response. He somehow makes it through the afternoon’s classes and still take notes. Rin only catches him staring off into the distance once during swim practice. He corrects his behavior after that. Rin doesn’t ask where he’s going after practice when he puts on normal clothes instead of his running gear. The redhead just gives him a sort of “good luck” look, and Sousuke wonders how much he’s heard from Makoto.

 

When he gets to the beach, he sees Haru’s lone figure already standing at the end of the pier. They’re the only two people there. Haru turns away from the water when Sousuke approaches.

 

“Hey,” he greets. “So Rin gave you my number?”

“Yeah.”

“I guess I should keep my phone with me more.”

“What, am I that important to you?” Sousuke asks jokingly, giving Haru a light jab in the ribs.

 

Haru catches his gaze. There first few stars that have emerged in the sky are reflected in his eyes.

 

“Yes.”

 

They both pause, feeling the weight of the word hanging in the air.

 

“You’re important to me, too,” Sousuke says quickly. It would feel wrong not to.

  
Haru lets out a gentle laugh. “You don’t have to tell me that.”

 

Their bond comes to life with those words. Sousuke can feel Haru’s understanding through it along with something else. It takes a moment for Sousuke to realize what it is.  _ Love _ . He stands in quiet amazement that he feels echoed through the bond. He stands still until Haru tugs on his hand and they sit on the end of the pier.

 

“Wow,” Sousuke says in a whisper.

 

They sit quietly, feeling each other’s emotions through the bond. Sousuke mostly feels contentment, but under that, he can feel the jagged edge of something else. The moment he pokes at it, he feels Haru lean away. Sousuke takes both of Haru’s hands in his own.  _ Don’t deal with it alone. _ He feels Haru open up slowly, peeling away layers of promises and restraints. Sousuke sees fear and indecision. He tries to send Haru support and comfort, but he doesn’t really know what he’s doing.

 

And Haru’s anxiety reminds him of his own struggles. He tries not to think about the physical therapy sessions and the days spent in pain. But, of course, trying not to think about it means he thinks about it. Haru squeezes his hands hard, a physical reminder that he’s not alone either. He separates one of his hands from Sousuke’s and raises it to the butterfly swimmer’s cheek.  _ I won’t stop you from swimming, and I’ll be there to help you heal. _ Sousuke’s eyes sting. He blinks rapidly a couple of times and leans into Haru’s palm.

 

He can still feel Haru’s fears threatening to swell to the surface.  _ Your future is yours. Find a dream and make it yours. _ He can feel Haru think, blue eyes shut and face turned slightly to the ground.

 

“I want to swim,” Haru states in a voice hardly above a whisper. 

 

Sousuke can feel resolve and a desire to win.  _ I want to be free. Whoever stands at the top is the freest. _ Haru’s eyes open. “And, I want you.”  _ Find a dream and make it yours. _ Sousuke buries his face in Haru’s shoulder.  _ Sure, if I don’t die of embarrassment first. _ He can feel Haru’s amusement come through. Sousuke scowls, and Haru’s free hand finds its way to the back of Sousuke’s neck.

 

Sousuke lifts his head when the embarrassment fades. Their faces are only a breath apart, and he can see the now numerous stars reflected in Haru’s eyes. Even though the sky is dark, he can see how blue those eyes are. In this moment, he’s glad he can see in color and see the vibrancy when Haru looks at him.

 

_ Can I kiss you? Yes. _ Sousuke closes the gap between them. When there lips meet, he feels fireworks glowing in his mind. There is more color in the darkness behind his closed eyelids than he’s seen in the years since he first met Haru. It doesn’t make sense, but he can see all the colors in the world when they kiss. Haru is a clear blue like the sky on a sunny day or the water off the coast of a tropical island. Sousuke is teal like the coves by the coast. Together they are an ocean of color and emotion that  sweeps through them like tidal currents.

 

When they part, they both gasp for breath like they’ve just swum a race. Haru’s hand is tangled in Sousuke’s hair, and there’s a breathless smile on both of their faces.

 

“I love you,” Sousuke breathes.

“You don’t have to say it.” Haru tries to sound annoyed, but his face still smiles.

“I wanted to.”

 

When they say goodbye late into the night, the bond stays active. Sousuke can feel Haru’s happy mood through it, and he walks into the dorm smiling. Rin looks up from the desk where he is uncharacteristically working on his homework. His mouth opens into an O of surprise when he sees Sousuke.

 

“I don’t think I wanna know what happened,” Rin says.

 

Sousuke raises an eyebrow. “What, I just kissed hi–”

“Stop,” Rin whines. “I haven’t seen Makoto in a while, so I’ll get jealous.”

“You literally saw him yesterday.”

“That  _ is _ a while,” Rin says dramatically and Sousuke laughs him off.

 

Sousuke pauses to plug in his headphones before glancing back at his red-haired best friend.

 

“By the way, I think we are the romantic type.”

 

Rin throws up his hands in defeat. “I don’t care,” he sighs loudly. “You, my friend, are a jerk. Now let me study, but keep in mind, if I’m not your best man at your wedding I will kill you. Slowly.”

 

Sousuke fumbles his phone in the shock of a combination of annoyance and embarrassment. “Not if I get you first,” he murmurs darkly.

 

A moment later, his phone buzzes with a new text alert. 

 

_ don’t kill Rin. Makoto needs him. _

 

_ shutup i know _

 

Sousuke climbs into bed.

 

_ Is he already planning our wedding? _

 

Sousuke glares at the text and considers shutting off his cell service. He doesn’t, but he does send an annoyed look in Rin’s direction.

  
_ only a little _ , he sends back.

**Author's Note:**

> As usual, unbeta'd so please let me know if there are errors. Also, please enjoy SH with me ^^
> 
> Thank you for reading!


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